On a photocopier, enlarge the patterns to 250% so that each square measures 2.5cm. Then trace them on to tracing paper, placing the gusset on folded tracing paper, matching the broken lines to the fold and making separate patterns for the front inner leg and back inner leg.

Mark the arrows, notches, crosses, dots and mouth. Cut out the patterns and open out flat.

Cutting out

Cut a pair of bodies and one pair of ears from the green patterned fabric. Cut one pair of ears, one gusset, one pair of front inner legs and one pair of back inner legs from turquoise patterned fabric. Cut one nose from black felt. Snip the notches and mark the darts, crosses and dots on the wrong side of the pieces with a pencil.

Making the doorstop

Note: Always take a 6mm seam allowance. Join pieces with right sides together and edges level, matching notches and dots.

Clip the corner, snip the curves then turn right side out. Press the ears. With the turquoise patterned sides facing up, pin and tack each ear to the dart on the body, matching the notch.

2 Fold the bodies along the darts. Stitch A-B. Press the darts open. Make a tiny hole at the eye crosses on the bodies. Insert the shank of the toy eyes through the hole from the right side. Fix in place on the wrong side with its locking washer, pushing it down as far as it will go.

3 Stitch the front inner legs to the gusset from C to the dot at D. Stitch the back inner legs to the gusset from the dot at E to F. Snip the curves. Press the seams open.

4 Pin and stitch one edge of the gusset and front inner legs and back inner legs to one body G-C-H and I-F-J. Snip the curves and press the seams open. Repeat to stitch the other edge of the gusset and front inner leg to the other body. Snip the curves and press the seams open.

Pin and stitch the bodies together G-A-I, leaving a gap between the notches to turn through later. Clip the corner and snip the curves. Press the seam open where possible and finger press open where the iron cannot access such as the tail. To finger press, open the seam and run a moistened finger along it.

Leave to dry before handling.

5 Stitch a front inner leg, one edge of the gusset and a back inner leg to one body K-D-E-L. Repeat to stitch the other body. Carefully snip the bodies to the dots at D and E. Finger press the seams open.

6 Stitch the inner legs to the bodies along the bases. Finger press the seams open. old each inner corner of the legs diagonally at M, matching the ends of the leg and base seams. Stitch M-H-M, M-K-M, M-L-M and M-J-M.

7 Turn the dog right side out. Roll scrap paper into a funnel and insert into the dog. Tip rice into the funnel and into the legs and lower half of the body. Stuff the rest of the body firmly and evenly with toy filling. Slipstitch the gap closed.

8 Pin the nose to dog matching G. Refer to the gusset pattern to draw the mouth on the gusset using an air-erasable pen. Embroider the mouth with three strands of black embroidery thread in stem stitch, fastening the thread to start and finish under the nose.

Oversew the nose to the dog with one strand of embroidery thread.

9 Pin 1cm-wide pink patterned ribbon centrally on top of 1.5cm-wide blue grosgrain ribbon, then wrap the ribbons around the dog’s neck, overlapping the ends on one side of the dog as a collar. Sew a button on top of the overlap, making sure to catch the collar to the dog.